Attempt to catch up? Mostly to see if i can distract myself long enough to eat lunch close to lunch time instead of right now.
Birthday week was the first big riding week in a long time. The Hundo to Plymouth to see Nixon and to get more samples for Nanoscape imaging (till i get content up on nanoscape.net go to fb for images),
The hops look awesome fixed properly for the SEM. So used to looking at dried up dead samples, which are still very cool, but it had been a while since the prep for Nanoscape stuff went beyond mounting and coating. There's a handful more samples to image and another series to create. But reaching a completion of that project right now. Another week of found time on the SEM should get me close to finished with that. Then back to revisiting the book project. Gonna have to figure out the publishing thing. Or just go with something like snapfish for this particular project. I dunno. Need to figure out who's publishing books like this and see if they want to make it happen. First have to actually gather and curate and write the content. Lots of work. Kind of overwhelming but I want to get it done.
So the ride out there. To Plymouth. Started a bit cold. I made a big 3 egg omelet and got out the door pretty early. Turns out I think Hundo prep takes about 90 min from alarm to rolling from the house on the bike. Packed another smaller two egg omelet wrapped in a tortilla as the only food. Two bottles of coffee and one bottle of water. that's it. Rode the white blue. the heavy slow pain in the ass but fits CX 'a' bike. I rode the heavy wheels that had the totally worn flat 1/2 blue from the puncture belt. Aka hey lets make these have even more friction, first they are a flat contact patch and that puncture belt is sticky. But I didn't get a flat and I was riding alone. So who really cares? Now the other problem with riding alone is routes are handwritten notes or printed cue sheets and yeah. Guess what? I took a wrong turn. Or really actually missed the turn because at the Y the street sign is backwards. So I thought i was going the right way. Until I got to Assonet, where Goldberg and I rode through on the Westport July Hotter than Hell Hundo. I know there's not many roads down there and figured if I kept going I can turn left and get back on track. It worked. Some mapping computer thing may have helped but i survived. Only added a few more miles I think. Wound up also taking a different route through Myles Standish, somehow missed one of those turns but I knew where I was going so it didn't matter.
Got up to Indy Ferm and saw paul, chatted a bit, saw the new Fermentation space, talked about prints, had a pint of the Boat 4 Sale Pale Ale. Was quite delicious. Drank some water but it was warm so instead of just riding with warm water Paul offered to fill the bottle up with cold beer. So I headed out back home with a waterbottle full of beer as my liquid lunch.
I hit all the marks on the way home, Didn't get lost. Time was looking good for getting back for the Smackdown. The perfect plan was to ride to the office and eat the snacks i had stashed (rare that there's ever any food in here, i usually eat it all) and get the live hops in fixative. But then I realized I don't have my office keys or a swipe card. And I was getting tired. Getting the samples into fixative and then riding smackdown? Doubtful. So I changed up plans, and while getting hungry the roads weren't great for eating so I detoured over to Warhurst to eat the pocket omelet. The lonely miles were starting to take a toll. Figured head home, get ID then ride in and fix samples and go join smackdown.
I got home and stayed there. Pretty fried. Changed plans, put the live hop vines in some water to keep them somewhat happy until i could get them to the lab.
Which wasn't the next day, that day was the annual retreat. The one time of year when I commute the opposite direction to the other end of the bike path.
the rest of the week was what it was but no plans over the weekend meant there was a chance to go on a special invite ride with Solobreak and TIMMIE. Got up whikked early, but not quite early enough to leave on time, but it wasn't a big deal, timing was not super tight and it worked out fine. Picked up Solobreak and headed to NH. Got to Timmie's house, and we kitted up and headed out.
It wound up being only 67 miles but I was cooked by the climbing. The first hill felt like a monster but looking at the elevation it is barely noticeable. I was riding on not quite enough food the day before and only a breakfast sandwich. Probably less smart given the climbing and intensity. I kept them in sight most of the time on the hills. Despite everyone saying they weren't climbers, they both were climbing better than I was, but then i'm a little bit bigger than either of them. We stopped in Peterborough for refueling and water. I caved and bought a fancy ice cream sandwich thing. Cold sugar. Mmmm. And suddenly the climbing wasn't so bad. I may have even beaten Solobreak up one of the following hills. Legs were awake for the rest of the ride and felt pretty solid all the way back. Not fast and I think I got dropped on a hill or two, and that double townline sprint gapped me, and those two were up the road and brain said fuck that i heard there's a doozie of a hill coming up i'm saving matches and Timmie graciously waited to make sure I didn't miss the turn. I would have been a bit lost if he didn't.
By the end of the ride I could feel the elevation but I also felt like I could have kept going. Stopping was the smart choice and Timmie cooked up some amazing food, and we hung out and drank some beers and talked for a while. It was a great day. Also went to a Market Basket for the first time, just to buy cheep good beer. I picked up some Green Blaze as sort of token NH thing to do.
Monday was a day, I snuck out at the end of it and did a few hill repeats on foot, they actually made the lower back feel better, stuff felt like it was better aligned. Legs were still so tired from the day before though. But hey 7 miles was better than 0 miles and as close to a rest day as I usually get.
Attempted smackdown that Tuesday (last week) Fuuuuuuck. That was rough. I was barely holding onto wheels and we weren't even going that fast. And then Leland attacked at the bottom of Pine and I couldn't jump and while able to keep everyone at about the same distance for a while I was pretty much gone by the top. Rode around alone the rest of the day, just unable to go fast enough to make me breath hard. Felt like brakes were rubbing, just dragging. Syl looped back and picked me up and we rode the rest of the way from Hillside back together. he was dropping me on the downhill section that I usually feel the best on. It was strange. But also probably a good indicator that I wasn't anywhere close to recovered. I was going to ride with the singletrack gang on Thursday morning in Rumford but I was still fried Wed night so pulled the plug.
September hasn't been what I'd wanted it to be. Long rides in were planned, long way home too. But stuff has happened and I have been unable to make it work. I did make the goal of at least 150 miles for the week by heading out yesterday to watch the kid's soccer. It rained for about 10 minutes all day. It started a minute before I left, and I rode through some intense rain, and then it stopped and I had wet roads, kit and shoes the rest of the day. But it didn't rain at the soccer game and the ride was good. Ride home was slow but nice.
Yesterday had been the traditional season opener for me for the last six years or so. Missing it seems weird mostly because I didn't really miss it. Initial plans to race Midnight and Night Weasel have changed too. First change of plans were that Night Weasels sold out so that make it an easy decision. And Donny G's new course sounds pretty legit and why not just head out and attempt to go race pace there on Weds with everyone? I'd like to go to Riverpoint too... but am thinking tomorrow maybe one more Smackdown. Even if I get dropped on Pine it is still good and worth riding.
Planning a Hundo for the 15th this week...Looking at the heatmap from May-last week:
That Rehoboth area... Pretty much have covered every road out there, mostly in May.
back to the CX thinking though, almost looking like Gloucester may be my first race. Could this year be a year I do fewer races than I did in '06 ... I dunno...
dunno
still hungry
maybe i'll eat lunch now...
heddwch
G
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